Southern Exposure : Nwankwo Left UCLA for Long Beach, and the 49ers Like Ike

Leaving UCLA wasn’t part of his plan, but Ike Nwankwo bailed before the door closed for good, not knowing--or caring--where he was headed but hurrying to get there.

Turning his back on Westwood was almost impossible. But he took the chance because hoop dreams die hard and the NCAA keeps the clock running.

Nwankwo packed his bags and headed south on the 405, exiting at Long Beach State. So far, it seems to suit him.

“I like it here,” Nwankwo said. “Everybody has gone out of their way to make me feel comfortable.

“All the coaches have been great, and the guys have bent over backward to make me feel at home. So, yeah, I think it was a good decision.”

A redshirt junior center, Nwankwo officially enrolled at Long Beach at the start of the spring semester, which began Jan. 29.

Under NCAA rules, Nwankwo, 22, must sit out the remainder of the season and complete a year of residence and 24 units at Long Beach before becoming eligible.

He has practiced with the 49ers since enrolling, increasing his coaches’ and teammates’ hopes with every blocked shot and rebound. The more they see, the more they like Ike.

“Oh, Ike’s been going great,” guard James Cotton said. “He’s going to give us that physical presence in the middle. He’s a rebounder and he blocks shots. He’s going to give us that toughness.”

Said Coach Seth Greenberg: “I’ve been working him out the last few days, and he’s just fun to work with. He’s so strong. He’s going to be a terrific offensive rebounder.”

He might have been at UCLA as well, but rebounding from the bench is difficult.

“The main thing this does is it gives Seth a big guy, and there aren’t a lot of them in [the Big West Conference],” UC Irvine Coach Rod Baker said.

Nwankwo played sparingly at UCLA. Last season, he played in a career-high 23 games, all in reserve, averaging 2.7 points and 1.6 rebounds as UCLA won its 11th national championship.

Although he enjoyed the title run as much as the next backup, Nwankwo was getting restless. He did not play in the Final Four championship game against Arkansas or in the West Regional title game against Connecticut.

Nwankwo envisioned a more active role when he signed with the Bruins after a standout prep career at Cypress Creek High in Houston. Nwankwo averaged 20.5 points, 12 rebounds and three blocked shots during his senior season, and some recruiting services rated him the state’s best center prospect.

Nwankwo, 6-11 and 240 pounds, possess the size and strength to compete in the Pacific 10. But, as Nwankwo learned the hard way, that combination doesn’t guarantee success in big-time college basketball.

“I was so young and naive to the whole process,” Nwankwo said. “When I got out of high school, I hoped I’d be good enough to play.

“I didn’t know all the things that affected playing time. I just kind of went in there on blind faith.”

After spending his first two seasons way behind starting center George Zidek, Nwankwo thought his time had finally arrived with Zidek’s graduation. Wrong.

Enter Jelani McCoy. The shot-swatting freshman still has some rough edges, but the odds are high that McCoy will be the Bruins’ starting center until he feels comfortable with his NBA draft status.

Nwankwo, a bright guy, noticed the signs early in practice this season when McCoy excelled in intrasquad games. Nwankwo wanted to be remembered for something other than backing up two future NBA first-round draft picks.

“When I spoke to [UCLA assistant coach] Lorenzo Romar and Coach [Jim] Harrick, the only thing they kept saying is how hard he works, what a good person he is and that I would just love him,” Greenberg said. “He just got caught in a logjam at UCLA.”

After a few games this season, Nwankwo decided it was time to go.

“To be honest with you, it didn’t really matter to me where I went,” Nwankwo said. “I was just looking to get out.”

Nwankwo said nine schools went after him. Going through the emotional process and continuing to watch UCLA play made him reconsider.

“It was unbelievably hard,” Nwankwo said. “When I first decided what I wanted to do is leave, Coach Harrick left the door open for me to come back. At first I was like, ‘No way.’ But then I thought about all the things I would be leaving behind.

“I thought about leaving all my friends. I thought about all the things that makes UCLA UCLA. I thought about the mystique . . . all the national exposure.

“I was on the verge of coming back. I had watched UCLA [defeat California, 93-73, Jan. 13 at Pauley Pavilion], and I said to myself, ‘I’m staying.’ But I decided I don’t want to look back 20 years from now and wonder if I could have played. I want to give myself a shot to play college basketball.”

Nwankwo said he chose Long Beach because he heard good things about Greenberg. Before this season, he played on the same team with Cotton in a summer developmental league at Cal State Los Angeles.

“I was really just looking for the right situation for myself, but once I got to Long Beach and saw all the talent I was like, ‘Wow,’ ” Nwankwo said. “James [Cotton] was on my team in the summer, so I knew how talented he is. But there is a lot of talent here.”

Nwankwo adds to what might be the Big West’s most talented group next season, UC Santa Barbara Coach Jerry Pimm said.

“He’s going to be good,” Pimm said. “I was sorry we didn’t get him.”

Greenberg, of course, has had success with a similar situation. He once offered a scholarship to a center from San Diego State although the player had only one year of eligibility remaining.

That player was Joe McNaull, who led Long Beach to the Big West tournament title last season and a berth in the NCAA tournament. McNaull was selected first-team All-Big West.

Long Beach will arrange next season’s schedule so 20 to 24 of its game will be after Nwankwo becomes eligible.

“I don’t hold any ill feelings or ill will,” Nwankwo said. “I made the decision [to go to UCLA], it was just bad timing. But I’ve already got the [championship] ring and the memories, and nobody can take that from me.”